<<BACK TO HOME

Bernd Pischetsrieder has resigned as chief executive of Volkswagen, to be replaced next year by Martin Winterkorn, current head of Audi’s luxury group.

Volkswagen is Europe’s biggest carmaker and is undergoing restructuring which has so far included increasing working hours for the same amount of pay, the result of which was to raise VW’s share price to its highest in eight years.

The abrupt manner in which Pischetsrieder made his announcement has led some to believe that the move is related to issues in the truck sector.

Truck company MAN recently made a failed attempt at a takeover of Scania –Volkswagen is the largest shareholder in both companies. VW attempted to bring the two together, but met opposition from Scania’s second-largest shareholder.

Other sources offer the explanation that Pischetsrieder has simply had enough of the politics involved in managing VW.